Product category:
Roofing
News Release from: Sandtoft Roof Tiles
Edited by the Buildingtalk Editorial
Team on 23 June 2006
Sandtoft pioneers in training
Sandtoft Training and Assessment Centre is the only roof tile manufacturer training centre offering NVQ assessment and qualifications.
In an industry that's constantly striving to show its customers a commitment to best practice, it's good to find evidence of a company that's so dedicated to training When Sandtoft established its Training and Assessment Centre (STAC) at its South Yorkshire head office in 1997, it was one of the first major manufacturers of slating and tiling products to establish a dedicated centre
This article was originally published on Buildingtalk on 26 Apr 2007 at 8.00am (UK)
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Nearly a decade on, it's still leading the way, being the only roof tile manufacturer training centre offering NVQ assessment and qualifications.
STAC has now developed a reputation in the industry as a centre of excellence, leading the way in the field of on-site training for slaters and tilers in the industry.
This has recently been reflected in a recent external verification visit which awarded the centre the highest grade (A), reflecting the extraordinarily high quality of the assessment process and internal systems.
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Originally set up in 1997 to provide the company's own staff, roofing operatives and builders merchants with the opportunity to train with roofing products and to raise awareness of good industry practices, the centre has expanded and developed apace.
Moving into new premises on the Sandtoft site in February 2000, the centre continued to develop and on 22 April 2002, was accredited by the CITB/City and Guilds.
This accreditation enabled it to offer an On Site Assessment and Training (OSAT) scheme for Roof Slating and Tiling NVQ levels 2 and 3, as well as the wide selection of training courses it was already offering.
Now the company is helping train and qualify roofers from across the country on the only OSAT scheme offered by a roof tile manufacturer in the country.
Sandtoft's training facility was originally set up, and, until recently was supervised by Kevin Taylor, who has extensive experience of the roofing industry having been in the business for 23 years.
Kevin has been appointed at the NFRC as Technical Training Officer, although he will retain his role as internal verifier for Sandtoft.
The day-to-day running of the centre is carried out by Simon Dixon, trainer and assessor.
Like Kevin, Simon has also been working in the roofing industry for 23 years.
As well as having completed 14 years of on-site experience, Simon has also taught at Leeds College of Building as well as the CITB Training Centres in Birmingham and Kent, before joining STAC three years ago.
As Simon explained "I believe that there are a lot of people in our industry who want to train and take NVQ's but nationally there just aren't enough resources or choices for them.
Many are turned off by the thought of training or gaining a qualification: they associate it with paperwork and academic study, but it doesn't have to be like that.
The centre offers unrivalled support for candidates right through the training process.
The assessment is done on site, but there's even a drop-in facility once a week so candidates can come in at short notice.
For example if the weather is bad they can give us a call and we can offer them anything from a few minutes support on their NVQ portfolio to several hours of practical training." The feedback from roofing contractors has been very positive, which is why the facility has continued to grow.
Having started with local companies, it has so far registered over 200 candidates for the NVQ and numbers are growing all the time.
The NVQ side is going from strength to strength with many candidates now registering via word of mouth recommendations, particularly where sub-contractors are being pressed by main contractors to get the qualifications.
Candidates can come into the centre to work on complex and curved rigs to cover features like eyebrow dormers, laced and swept valleys and conical roofs.
Simon stated: "We still want more people actually training at the centre itself.
There are reasons why people are reluctant to leave site and come and train, and as a former contractor I understand the pressures of running a business.
"However, we feel that we can offer the sort of flexible on-demand training that could appeal to roofing contractors.
We have a good track record of putting specific courses on for small groups and would welcome any enquiries from people regarding training at the centre." Achieving an NVQ has never been more flexible.
The new "Magenta" version of the NVQ was launched 1 September 2005, replacing the existing "Grey" scheme which will now become obsolete.
This means that candidates registered after 1st September must be on Magenta, but those registered before that date have the option of completing on the old scheme or transferring to the new one.
This new scheme has been made considerably more flexible in response to varying skills needs around the country, and allows candidates and employers to choose from three different training routes depending on their requirements.
In addition, the CITB have just successfully piloted a fast-track NVQ level 2 for experienced roofers.
STAC will shortly be offering this short "experienced worker" route of assessment alongside the OSAT scheme.
This method of assessment comprises a practical 8 hour test within the centre itself, rather than on-site visits.
Sandtoft believes this will appeal to many contractors and it will mean using the excellent facilities in the centre itself more fully.
Although the main work of the centre is focused around NVQs, it is increasingly providing more practical and theoretical training for merchants, such as dry roofing and estimating.
While training of this kind has been provided since its inception in 1997, Sandtoft expects to see it increase during the course of 2006, and is putting the necessary resources and infrastructure in place in anticipation of this increase.
These are exciting times for Sandtoft.
Last year saw the company celebrate its 100th anniversary, and this year the company has just announced the completion of the UK's largest new clay tile plant.
As Sales and Marketing Director, Nick Oldridge, states, it's a time for looking forward not back: "The Sandtoft philosophy has always been to push forward whether it's innovation in products or the development of people, and training has been a core principal of this.
The Sandtoft Training and Assessment Centre is just one of the ways we are trying to promote good practice, innovation and technical excellence throughout the industry.".
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